The ecologist admits ‘messing up’ in the past, but says his Restor project will be ‘a Google Maps of biodiversity’, showing the impact of restoration – from a forest to your own back gardenListen to our podcast: Can we really solve the climate crisis by planting trees? – part oneThomas Crowther understands more than most the danger of simple, optimistic messages about combating the climate crisis. In July 2019, the British ecologist co-authored a study estimating that Earth had space for an extra trillion trees on land not used for agriculture or settlement. Its implications were intoxicatingly hopeful. By restoring forests in an area roughly the size of China, the press release accompanying the paper suggested two-thirds of all emissions from human activities still present in the atmosphere could be removed.The study, led by Jean-François Bastin, a postdoctoral researcher at Crowther’s lab in ETH Zürich, Switzerland, was the second most featured climate paper in the media in 2019, according to one analysis. It inspired the World Economic Forum’s (WEF) One Trillion Trees Initiative, launched last year after Salesforce billionaire Marc Benioff read the paper on the recommendation of Al Gore, the former US vice-president. The Time magazine owner told everyone he could about the research: chief executives, friends and world leaders, even convincing climate sceptic Donald Trump to back the WEF initiative with a multibillion tree commitment. Continue reading...

Hailing end to toxic fuel additive, Guterres says same commitment is needed to eliminate other pollutantsThe UN secretary general and environmentalists have welcomed a declaration by the UN Environment Programme (UNEP) on the end of leaded petrol in the face of years of “underhand” opposition.As Algeria became the last country to stop selling the toxic fuel last month, the two-decade campaign to ban it has been called a “milestone for multilateralism”. Continue reading...

Oil firm sets out plans to provide a third of Britain’s network needed to hit climate targetsShell has announced its aim to install 50,000 on-street electric vehicle (EV) charging points in the UK over the next four years, in an attempt to provide a third of the network needed to hit national climate change targets.Earlier this year, the energy company acquired ubitricity, a leading supplier of local authorities’ on-street EV power points, with a network of 3,600 chargers in lamp posts or bollards. Continue reading...

Dirty air is a far greater killer than smoking, car crashes or HIV/Aids, with coal burning the leading causeAir pollution is cutting short the lives of billions of people by up to six years, according to a new report, making it a far greater killer than smoking, car crashes or HIV/Aids.Coal burning is the principal culprit, the researchers said, and India is worst affected, with the average citizen dying six years early. China has slashed air pollution in the last seven years, but dirty air is still cutting 2.6 years from its people’s lifespan. Continue reading...

Global study calls for urgent action to prevent ecosystem collapse, with farming the biggest cause of die-offBetween a third and half of the world’s wild tree species are threatened with extinction, posing a risk of wider ecosystem collapse, the most comprehensive global stocktake to date warns.Forest clearance for farming is by far the biggest cause of the die-off, according to the State of the World’s Trees report, which was released on Wednesday along with a call for urgent action to reverse the decline. Continue reading...

Foundations For Tomorrow study gives insight into young people’s concerns for environment and government responseYoung Australians overwhelmingly want to see immediate action on climate change but have little faith their leaders will do anything significant, a new survey suggests.The survey from Foundations For Tomorrow, an initiative of the World Economic Forum and supported by AwareSuper, received 10,000 responses from Australians aged under 30. Continue reading...

Nappy Alliance says scheme would encourage people to switch away from polluting single-use nappiesCampaigners have called for a national voucher scheme to encourage parents to embrace reusable nappies after Downing Street denied reports of a new tax on disposable ones.The government insisted there were no plans for a tax on single-use nappies despite suggestions they were the next item on a “ministerial hitlist” after last week’s crackdown on single-use plastic plates and cutlery in England. Continue reading...

Move on ninth day of latest protest campaign appears to mark change in use of force against the groupPolice in London wielded batons and threw punches against Extinction Rebellion protesters as they battled to gain control of an open-top bus blocking London Bridge on Tuesday, in a step-change in their use of force against the group.On the ninth day of XR’s latest protest campaign, the Guardian witnessed officers from the Metropolitan police climb the sides of the bus parked across the junction at the south of the bridge, striking and wrestling with protesters. Continue reading...

Ignore the myths about nuclear power, writes Rob Loveday of Generation Atomic – it is an essential source of clean energyThe letter on nuclear energy (25 August) sadly could not be more wrong – nuclear is one of the cleanest fuels we have, and has always been so. The carbon and material footprints of nuclear – for its entire lifetime, including mining and decommissioning – are lower than solar and on a par with wind, according to the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change.Moreover, the nuclear industry manages its waste stream – that is more than can be said for the solar industry, which is set to produce millions of tons of toxic waste. Besides, spent nuclear fuel is not “waste” but a valuable source of low-carbon energy that can be recycled via reprocessing or proposed breeder reactors, thereby neutralising the vast majority of the radioactivity. Continue reading...

71-year-old man’s wife left to get help after witnessing attack but when she returned he was no longer on the steps of their home

Government vets take animal from site in Gloucestershire in relation to destruction warrantGeronimo the alpaca has been taken from the farm where he lives by government vets supported by a police escort.Avon and Somerset police officers attended the site in Wickwar, South Gloucestershire, shortly before 11am on Tuesday alongside three people dressed in blue overalls, masks and goggles. Continue reading...

Animal Rebellion activists demand that Arla become plant-based by 2025Vegan environmental activists have blockaded a dairy distribution centre in Buckinghamshire, which they say handles 10% of the milk supply in the UK, while a dozen other activists have sought to occupy the headquarters of WWF.About 50 activists from Animal Rebellion, a sister group to Extinction Rebellion, blocked the gates to the Arla distribution centre near Aylesbury, locking on to bamboo structures and concrete barricades to prevent lorries from gaining access. Continue reading...

The park service is turning to selfie stations, timed tickets and crowd-monitoring apps to preserve public landsArches national park had to close its gate more than 120 times this summer alone when parking lots filled up, creating a safety hazard for emergency vehicles. Yellowstone national park reached 1 million visitors in July for the first time in its history. At Zion national park, the wait for a hike was a Disneyland-long four hours. And with the visitors came graffiti, trash and reckless behavior.“It’s no secret that this summer has been one of our busiest summers ever,” says Jenny Anzelmo-Sarles, the chief spokesperson for the National Park Service. “We don’t have official numbers, but preliminary visitation statistics show that the most popular 12 to 15 national parks are seeing record numbers.” Continue reading...

Angus Taylor says Australia on track to meet Paris agreement climate commitments but analysts say data largely reflects impact of pandemic

Money available for ‘bold and ambitious’ ideas by energy network firms in aim to reach net zeroGreat Britain’s energy regulator has launched a £450m fund aimed at innovative projects that will help the country meet its net zero climate targets.Ofgem will make the money available to energy network companies that are trying to ensure homes and business are going green. Continue reading...

Metropolitan police say officers working to get traffic moving after van and caravan used to block roadExtinction Rebellion protesters blocked Tower Bridge with a van and caravan in the latest step of the group’s continuing demonstrations.Activists from the group, also known as XR, lay on the ground near the London landmark to protest against government investment in fossil fuels as part of their fifth wave of mass protests on environmental issues. Continue reading...

UN announcement marks ‘huge milestone for global health and our environment’The era of leaded petrol is officially over, the UN has announced, eliminating a major threat to human and planetary health.UN experts have called the use of the fuel, which began in 1922, a “catastrophe for the environment and public health”. By the 1970s, nearly all petrol produced around the world contained lead. Now the last country to use it, Algeria, has finally stopped selling it in petrol stations. Continue reading...

Research finds almost two-thirds of older people want UK government to move faster on green initiativesThe majority of over-50s believe the UK government should be doing more to address the climate crisis, even if it leads to higher prices, a study has found.A survey of more than 500 people aged 50 and over found that almost two-thirds want ministers to move faster on climate initiatives, regardless of whether it meant products and services would be more expensive over time, or more difficult to access. Continue reading...

Islay’s 9 distilleries burn 15m litres of oil a year. Now Bruichladdich is leading a radical effort to reduce emissionsLike the other famous malt whiskies made on Islay, Bruichladdich heavily promotes its idyllic island location, carefully selected Scottish barley, clear Hebridean water and loving attention of its craft distillers.But Bruichladdich is confronting a significant problem. Like its neighbouring distilleries, and many more of Scotland’s 134 whisky producers, it relies on fuel oil, brought in on diesel-powered ferries, to fire the boilers. Islay’s nine distilleries burn 15m litres of oil each year. Ironically, this beautiful spot may well have the highest per capita CO emissions of any community in Scotland. Continue reading...

Demonstrators attach themselves to railings in reaction to museum taking funding from oil firm for Our Future Planet showExtinction Rebellion protesters have glued and locked themselves to the railings inside the Science Museum, in a protest against the oil firm Shell’s sponsorship of an exhibition about greenhouse gases.Five people have put their arms through the railings and glued their hands together so that they are not damaging the museum’s property. Six have deadlocked their necks against the railings. Some are scientists dressed in lab coats, while others are in clothes with Extinction Rebellion logos. Continue reading...

Course would aim to instil love of wildlife in teens and inspire them to protect it. Plus: test your knowledge with our quizWhat is the difference between a weasel and a stoat? Can you name five native UK woodland flowers? What birds are considered lowland heathland specialists? Teenagers could be challenged on these questions as part of a natural history GCSE, which could be announced in the coming weeks.If plans go ahead, it would be the first GCSE to be introduced since a reformed computer science qualification in 2014. The 21st century is creating a lot of work for technology geeks and nature enthusiasts alike, and schools need to create a generation of youngsters who will be up to the challenge, argues producer and nature writer Mary Colwell. Continue reading...

James Cook University team hope replanting project will be a blueprint for restoring underwater meadows on Great Barrier ReefResearchers have been forced to avoid crocodiles, deadly jellyfish and even quicksand-like mud to replant seagrass beds south of Cairns as part of a project they hope to expand across tropical Australia.The underwater meadows at Mourilyan Harbour were once thriving habitats, providing food for prawns, dugongs and green sea turtles. Continue reading...

Power from fusion has proved too hard to generate at scale. Can recent breakthroughs and massive investment change that?On 8 August 2021, a laser-initiated experiment at the United States National Ignition Facility (NIF), based at Lawrence Livermore National Laboratory in California, made a significant breakthrough in reproducing the power source of the stars, smashing its own 2018 record for energy released from nuclear fusion reactions 23 times over. This advance saw 70% of the laser energy put in released as nuclear energy. A pulse of light, focused to tiny spots within a 10-metre diameter vacuum chamber, triggered the collapse of a capsule of fuel from roughly the size of the pupil in your eye to the diameter of a human hair. This implosion created the extreme conditions of temperature and pressure needed for atoms of hydrogen to combine into new atoms and release, kilogram for kilogram, 10m times the energy that would result from burning coal.The result is tantalisingly close to a demonstration of “net energy gain”, the long sought-after goal of fusion scientists in which an amount greater than 100% of the energy put into a fusion experiment comes out as nuclear energy. The aim of these experiments is – for now – to show proof of principle only: that energy can be generated. The team behind the success are very close to achieving this: they have managed a more than 1,000-fold improvement in energy release between 2011 and today. Prof Jeremy Chittenden, co-director of the Centre for Inertial Fusion Studies at Imperial College London, said last month that “The pace of improvement in energy output has been rapid, suggesting we may soon reach more energy milestones, such as exceeding the energy input from the lasers used to kickstart the process.” Continue reading...

Polystyrene cups will also be banned but campaigners say action to cut plastic waste is ‘snail-paced’Single-use plastic plates and cutlery, and polystyrene cups will be banned in England under government plans, as it seeks to reduce the plastic polluting the environment.A public consultation will launch in the autumn and the ban could be in place in a couple of years. The move was welcomed by campaigners, but they said overall progress on cutting plastic waste was “snail-paced”, with the EU having banned these items and others in July. Continue reading...

Treasurer says there are ‘lots of internal conversations’ on whether Australia could make a firm net zero commitment at Cop26

As ConocoPhillips searches for gas off Bass Strait island’s west coast, fears grow for the effect on local fisheries

Activists tour financial institutions to highlight firms they believe to be culpable in climate crisisExtinction Rebellion protesters poured red paint over the entrances of City institutions as they marched through London’s financial district in a protest against the ‘“blood money” on which they say the UK economy is built.In what appeared to be the biggest mobilisation so far this week by the environmental protest group, several thousand demonstrators took a tour of the City, stopping off at the banks and law firms they saw as most culpable in the climate crisis. Continue reading...

As many as 70,000 animals that should have gone to slaughter are stranded on UK farms amid staff shortages, NPA saysBritain’s food and drink industry is calling on the government to introduce a “Covid-19 recovery visa” to recruit overseas workers to ease disruption in the food supply chain, amid warnings from UK pig producers that healthy animals may be culled because of a labour shortage.Trade associations representing all areas of the UK’s food chain – including the National Farmers’ Union, the Road Haulage Association, the Food and Drink Federation and the British Meat Processors Association – have sent a report to government, urging ministers to act to ensure continuity, quality and choice in Britain’s food supply. Continue reading...

Signs of mid-September are already here, which experts predict could create spectacular autumnal coloursThe season of mists and mellow fruitfulness is rolling in earlier than usual across parts of the south and south-east of England due to the soggy and sunny summer, according to forestry experts.Ripening blackberries, sweetening chestnuts and burgeoning forest fruits – typically seasonal hallmarks of autumn normally seen from mid-September – are all evident, said Forestry England, which manages publicly owned forests. Continue reading...

A movement of entrepreneurs in US cities is bringing healthy food to neighborhoods hurt when policies create food desertsWhen Samantha Pounder and Hannah Choi imagine the shelves of a corner store, they see fresh aloe and kale instead of the usual sugary, shrink-wrapped confections and salty snacks.It’s a vision that will soon become a reality when the pair open Muki’s Market in Washington DC, one of the newest additions to a growing movement to supply big city food deserts with healthy corner stores. Continue reading...

Public urged to report dying or dead animals as fears grow that form of myxomatosis has crossed over from rabbitsMore than 1,100 hares have been recorded as dying of a new “viral cocktail” since 2018 as fears grow that a form of myxomatosis has jumped from rabbits.People are being urged to report dying or dead hares to scientists who are seeking to discover the cause of so many unexplained deaths in the hare population, with a spike in sickness occurring each autumn. Continue reading...

The best of this week’s wildlife pictures, including a slow loris, a pink lady mollusc and Lake Titicaca frog Continue reading...

Evacuation orders issues in two counties as more than 14,000 firefighters battle wildfires up and down CaliforniaA wind-driven wildfire continued to advance towards Lake Tahoe, clouding the alpine vacation and tourist spot in a sickly yellow layer of smoke, as more than 14,000 firefighters battled wildfires up and down California.As the weather heated up and winds shifted, the Caldor fire, the nation’s top-priority for firefighting resources, grew to more than 213 sq miles (551 sq km) south-west of the lake but containment remained at 12%, officials said. Continue reading...

New England renewable energy zone inundated with investor interest amid pushback to federal rules on fossil fuel generators

Nest located in the base of a dead alder tree about one-quarter mile from where a resident reported a live sighting on 11 AugustOfficials in Washington state said they had destroyed the first “murder hornet” nest of the season, which was located near the town of Blaine along the Canadian border.The Washington state department of agriculture (WSDA) said it eradicated the Asian giant hornet nest on Wednesday. Continue reading...

Group linked to Extinction Rebellion says Queen has ‘blood on her hands’ over hunting and animal agricultureAnimal rights activists linked to Extinction Rebellion have painted the fountain outside Buckingham Palace red, accusing the Queen of having “blood on her hands”.Animal Rebellion activists stained the fountain and its waters on Thursday, protesting against the use of crown lands for hunting and animal agriculture, as well as the Queen’s attempts to have her land exempted from an initiative to cut carbon emissions. Continue reading...

Exclusive: proposal part of party’s plan to give City of London a lead role in helping UK tackle climate crisisNew listings of fossil fuel companies would be immediately banned on the London Stock Exchange as part of a proposal by the Liberal Democrats that the party says could help the UK become a leader in tackling the climate emergency.Under the plan outlined to the Guardian by the Lib Dem leader, Ed Davey, another immediate policy would be to stop new bonds being issued in London to finance oil, coal or gas exploration. Continue reading...

Officials close eight beaches as residents complain of cloudy, green water that emits a foul smellSpanish officials have banned the use of fertilisers near one of Europe’s largest saltwater lagoons after five tons of dead fish washed up on its shores.Alarm bells began to sound in the south-eastern region of Murcia last week as scores of small fish and shrimp began to wash up along the beaches of the Mar Menor lagoon. Continue reading...

Seagrass beds along Florida’s east coast have collapsed, wiping out an important manatee food source. With nothing to eat, scientists are racing to save this gentle marine mammal Continue reading...

Exclusive: Robin Harper says power-sharing deal ‘packed with vague promises’ as party prepares for heated ratification voteA former leader of the Scottish Greens has attacked the deal the party struck with Nicola Sturgeon’s government for failing to take tougher action on North Sea oil, marine protection and taxation.Robin Harper, the co-leader of the Scottish Greens from 2004 to 2008, said the agreement was “absolutely packed with vague promises” and was disappointing because it compromised too much on core policies. Continue reading...

Kelp can clean New York’s polluted waters, tackle climate change and is sustainable – but growers need a law change firstMotoring out of Montauk Harbor aboard a research vessel, Sean Barrett waves hello to a commercial fishing boat, yelling “What up, Jay! Any slipper snails in there?”It is a crisp, sunny day – the kind that brings tourists to Montauk, a small fishing village at the end of Long Island, New York. Although the town is better-known as a resort destination, it is the state’s largest commercial fishing port, only one of two major ports that are still in operation. Continue reading...

Fight to save fish tells story of how European food preferences clashed with tribal systems, shaping what we choose to protectPerry Chocktoot remembers the last time he ate a C’waam suckerfish. It was 1984. The fish was canned by a Klamath Tribes member and served with Tabasco. After finishing off the meat, Chocktoot was left with a tin of smoky fish oil mixed with hot sauce. “We just tipped it back and drank it,” Chocktoot recalled. “It was so good.”Just four years later, the C’waam and its cousin the Koptu were put on the endangered species list. Since then, for more than three decades, no member of the Klamath Tribes has legally harvested the species, which are endemic to a lake and series of rivers in southern Oregon known as the Klamath Basin and once formed the backbone to the tribes’ seasonal food system. Continue reading...

Australian oil giant is being accused of trying to ‘greenwash’ their operations to appeal to investors

Imprint’s Green Ideas series begins with 20 short books by writers from Rachel Carson to Greta Thunberg it believes are ‘the classics that made a movement’From Greta Thunberg to James Lovelock, publisher Penguin Classics has come up with a “new canon” of the environmental literature, which it believes has “changed the way we think and talk about the living Earth”.The move is part of a growing trend in publishing for books focused on the climate, whether from big hitters such as David Attenborough or Bill Gates, whose How to Avoid a Climate Disaster was out in February, or so-called “cli-fi”, climate fiction, from writers including Richard Powers and Jenny Offill. Penguin’s Green Ideas series capitalises on this appetite, collecting 20 short books it believes constitute “the classics that made a movement”, by “visionary thinkers around the world [who] have raised their voices to defend the planet”. Continue reading...

More than 60 NGOs call for spending rule change, saying people on frontline of climate crisis want greater access to reproductive healthcareThe UK government has been urged to open up its £11bn pot of climate funding to contraception, as research from low-income countries shows a link between poor access to reproductive health services and environmental damage.In a letter to Alok Sharma, president of the UN Cop26 climate conference, an alliance of more than 60 NGOs has called for the funding eligibility rules to be changed to allow projects concerned with removing barriers to reproductive healthcare and girls’ education to access climate funds. Continue reading...

Japanese government claims water from nuclear plant released through 1km tunnel will be safe as all radioactive elements will have been removedOperators of Japan’s stricken Fukushima nuclear plant have unveiled plans to construct an undersea tunnel to release more than a million tonnes of treated water from the site into the ocean.Plans for the 1km tunnel were announced on Wednesday after the Japanese government decided in April to release the accumulated water in two years’ time. Continue reading...

26 August 1970: Government agency questions whether ‘greenhouse’ effect from the burning of fossil fuels will raise the Earth’s temperatureToo much fuss is being made about the fashionable word “pollution,” says the government agency which has been keeping an eye on it since 1863. The Chief Alkali Inspector, Mr FE Ireland, who published his annual report yesterday, says: “We must beware the obvious danger that emotions could be roused to the point of overriding common sense. This is not a problem to be tackled in a spirit of panic and those prophets of doom who predict the more bizarre kind of human catastrophe and paint rather self-righteous pictures of scientists as irresponsible villains exploiting humanity to the point of disaster could well be doing their (and our) cause a great disservice.”Related: Sixty years of climate change warnings: the signs that were missed (and ignored) Continue reading...

In a ‘landmark’ Australian first, the court found the state environmental regulator had not fulfilled its duty to protect the state’s environment

Female activists claim police officers trampled them as they rushed to secure cordonExtinction Rebellion protesters have blocked Oxford Circus in London, the site of one of the group’s most famous occupations, as women took the lead on the third day of its latest campaign of disobedience.Just before 2pm, protesters swarmed into the middle of the intersection between Regent Street and Oxford Street, London’s busiest shopping district, and erected a pink structure and sound system. Continue reading...